Shades of cleanliness

0 Comments | La Crosse Tribune, Feb 03, 2001 | by Rindfleisch, Terry

Most people attending the 11th annual Shades of Blue Tattoo Show at the La Crosse Center this weekend are looking for the best tattoo for the best price.

Sterile techniques are rarely the customer's main concern, said Rob Ferguson, a tattoo artist with Buddha's Body Art Tattooing & Exotic Piercing in Erie, Pa. But for Ferguson and many tattoo artists, meeting health standards is important, because they want to run reputable and safe operations.

"Most consumers worry about prices rather than safety," Ferguson said. 'They also operate under false pretenses that everything must be sterile.

"We're out here to make money, and a lot of ethics can get lost with some operations," he said. "But with this show, you're not going to get away with dirty stuff."

Tattoo and body piercing shows and operators in Wisconsin are regulated by state law, which was modeled after a La Crosse County ordinance. In 1991 La Crosse was the first Wisconsin county to adopt an ordinance regulating tattoo artists and shops.

Al Graewin, program director of the La Crosse County Health Department, said he became concerned about the health and safety of people getting tattooed during an inspection of a large tattoo show on La Crosse's North Side in 1991.

"There were no autoclaves or sterilizing units, and there was a lack of apparent sterile needles," Graewin said. "The same needles were being used on others."

He said he primarily was concerned about the transmission of diseases such as hepatitis. He worked with owners of tattoo shops to create an ordinance that requires permits for tattoo parlors and artists.

Graewin and a half dozen inspectors for the La Crosse County Health Department spent three hours Friday afternoon inspecting each tattoo and body piercing operation and artist before the show opened at 4 p.m.

Ferguson said there are no regulations for tattoo artists in Pennsylvania, but he would welcome them. "Good tattoo artists want regulations because they want a good reputation, and they want what's best for their customers," Ferguson said. "This show is really clean because the health department is on top of it."

Joe Proctor, owner of Smokin Joe's Tattoo in Grand Island, Neb:, said he played a major role in Nebraska adopting a state law regulating tattoo and body piercing businesses.

"Regulation weeds out people who shouldn't be in business," Proctor said.

Dale Grosskurth, a La Crosse County sanitarian, went through an inspection checklist with Ferguson and Proctor. He checked the autoclave, or sterilization unit, and asked Ferguson to show sterile gloves, waste containers, plastic covers for spray bottles, disinfectant, antiseptic, disposable razors, sterile bandages and paper towels.

Ferguson said he is a second-generation tattoo artist and his family has been in business for 34 years.

Grosskurth also looked at consent forms, business records and written aftercare instructions.

Under state law, no one younger than 18 may get a tattoo, but 16- and 17-year-olds may have body piercing with parental consent.

Grosskurth found minor problems during his inspections

Jim Steinhoff, another county sanitarian, said tattoo artists have to prove the autoclaves are sterilizing properly. He said health department inspectors perform spot checks on operations during the show, which runs through Sunday. He said the health department has not had to investigate a report of illness from a tattoo show since 1991. "Our main concern is infection," Steinhoff said.